Last week, Mets general manager Sandy Alderson drew attention when he told WFAN that re-signing Johan Santana is a "possibility" this winter. That would only happen after the Mets buy out Santana’s contract for $5.5 million and sign him to a significant discount from the $25.5 million he made for not pitching an inning in 2013 due to a second anterior capsule tear in his left shoulder.

Tuesday, Santana’s agent Chris Leible said a return to the Mets isn’t out of the question, but the two sides still haven’t spoken. Santana, however, is making strides in his rehab. Leible said the two-time Cy Young Award winner resumed throwing late last week in Fort Myers, Fla.

"He’s not putting pressure on himself," Leible told The Star-Ledger. "It’s not intense. He just started throwing. But it’s a big step and he expects to be ready for spring training."

Santana, who will be 35 years old by Opening Day next season, underwent surgery April 2. He had the same procedure done Sept. 14, 2010 and returned to pitch April 5, 2012.

He posted a 4.85 ERA in 21 starts in 2012, one of which resulted in the lone no-hitter in Mets history. He hasn’t pitched in the majors since Aug. 17, 2012.

Santana signed a six-year, $137.5 million contract before the start of the 2008 season and went 46-34 with a 3.18 ERA in 109 starts with the Mets.

"I don’t really know what Johan’s thinking," Alderson said last week. "We’ll talk to him, I’m sure, over the next couple of weeks, but I think he wants to pitch. We’ll just have to see what the market is for these guys and how much of our resources we want to allocate to somebody coming off injury or somebody you hope was able to pitch for you at a higher level."

Alderson has said the club will be look to sign a "mid-range" option for the starting rotation in the wake of Matt Harvey’s decision to undergo Tommy John surgery, which will cost him the entire 2014 season. The general manager considers Zack Wheeler, Dillon Gee and Jon Niese the only locks for the starting rotation next season and would rather add a veteran than depend on a prospect or a pitcher coming off injury to fill a void.